“It’s going to look bad sir.”
“Precisely. Radicals stand out, they get attention, so whoever does the propaganda for Yiu Mei screwed up big time. If they’d stomped this guy out early he’d be long forgotten. Instead they branded him for us.”
“I’ll get the Ophridia guys churning some news stories after this meeting then. We’ve also got a resistance movement brewing on Alcyone. A secessionist movement that has accused the Core of bombing the planet to turn it into a personal private luxury resort for the rich.”
“I’m not surprised by the Core’s attempts to get a real estate deal, but I am surprised by Alcyone starting a secessionist movement. They’re a peacenik world without any weapons or bases. Still this reeks of Core corruption. Let’s provide media support. They’re going to need all the help they can get. Anyone we know there?” Hacker asked.
“Uhh…there are these two pilots I’d hired to deliver some parts a few months ago. Apparently they joined up with the locals.”
“They any good?”
“Oh, they’re the best pilots in the galaxy. They’re just...different sir.”
“How so?”
“Well, one is always waiting to make a ‘Your Mom’ joke and the other is as jittery as a chihuahua.”
“Ugh, I’d hate to be stuck on a ship with them. What’s next?”
“Well turns out we’re in the news too. Conspiracy tabloids have referenced the Grid as an omnipresent arm of the Core government and the mysterious leader Hacker: Stealer of Secrets as the right hand of the Ministry of Information,” Rick said as flicked the article to Hacker’s computer screen.
Hacker’s grin widened. “I like that, run with it. Feed the conspiracy guys some goodies. Make me omnipresent,” He said as he took another sip of coffee.
“Done. Also, the technicians are asking for another demo of how to get past the Ministry of Defense’s firewall. They did a security upgrade last week and it’s causing some headaches.”
“Schedule it for after lunch. I’ll configure some probes. What is the status from those real estate scouts on finding us a new location?”
“Still looking. I’m putting a lot of pressure on them.”
“Tell them they have a week. If they don’t find us a new location, they’re out and I’ll find an agent who can find us a new base by then.”
“Will do sir. Why the rush?”
“We’re way overdue for a move. The Core is beginning to get a trace on our location. Schedule a look over of security protocols and have everyone scale back thirty percent on any government intrusions outside of my MoD probes. Let’s make today’s firewall demo the last breach for a few weeks,” Hacker said.
“Isn’t that a bit overzealous?”
“Secrets are meant to remain secret.”
“Until you get ahold of them.”
“Hey, I don’t talk until the right price is paid.”
“Sir, you need to see this,” Rick said as he burst into Hacker’s office. “It’s that weapon maker Jackson Warrens. He uploaded a data string onto our servers...I’ve never seen anything like it!” He said as he brought the file up inside Hacker’s chamber.
Hacker skimmed over the lines of code. He noticed the anomalies and the idiosyncrasies within the data that led him to one conclusion.
“This…whatever it is, it’s technology we’ve never even comprehended before. The coding is beyond advanced, the layering is so thick that it would take most people weeks to unravel it.”
“I’m guessing you’ve solved it?” Rick asked.
“Let me try something…” Hacker said as he ran a few simulations. He studied the matrices and the results of his computations.
“Unbelieveable. If my math is correct, then this is what is known as fourth dimensional metal.”
“What?! How would metal have code?”
“Until now, it’s existence was only a theory, but in the fourth dimension, an object such as this would exist in all states at once. Whether it be a shard of ore, or an advanced weapon of integrated circuitry, 4D metal is both of them at the same time. Coding is the means for the lower dimensions to control the object.”
“But…how can metal have code?!”
“It was just…created like that. It’s part of the item’s state of being. It could’ve been put there by a superior intelligence as a gift to us or it is the means of us being able to control it. It’d be like giving a stick man on paper a pencil.”
“How do you suppose he got ahold of it?”
“Dunno, but fact remains our friend has it. What I do know is that we have the most complicated code in history right in front of us, and I’m the one who gets to master it!” Hacker said with a grin. He expanded his script page and keyed in dozens of lines of code.
“What’re you doing?”
“I’m going to give our friend some options. Get the casting engines ready, we’re going to create a device which can control this amorphous metal.”
“Do you think this is even possible sir?” Rick asked.
“I will make it possible. I will master this program, regardless of the complexity involved. I will turn the tide of this African war and bring it to an end!”
Rick paused for a moment as he mulled over Hacker’s words. With all of their time hidden behind screens watching the events of the galaxy unfold, it was easy to forget about the people involved. Hacker thought he could end a war as easily as he could manipulate script. Rick knew it wasn’t so simple, but he also knew better than to argue with Hacker.
“I also received this update from Akio. It’s a statement issued by General Hawkes against us,” Rick said.
Hacker froze. “The Ministry of Information’s attack dog?” He asked.
“That’s him,” Rick said as he started the video.
Hawkes was standing at a podium, poised to issue a statement. “Rest assured citizens of the Core that I will hunt down The Grid to the very ends of Core space. They are a cancer on our society, traitors to our cause, and sowers of dissent. I will not allow this group to contaminate the ideals of order and civility within the Core. I have procured the resources I need from Minister Philips to launch my manhunt and put an end to The Grid once and for all. Praise be to the Core for order restored. I shall bring credibility back to our information sources,” Hawkes said before Rick stopped the video.
“So, another one launching a crusade against us?” Hacker asked.
“The men are scared of him Hacker. Hawkes has a history of making people…disappear. Y’know, Blackhat Hawkes?”
“I know all too well of what Hawkes can do. He won’t catch us. We’ll outsmart him.”
“I sure hope so sir.”
A quiet 18 months passed as the Grid kept quiet under the Core’s watchful eye. They kept their distance from the events which transpired, but intervened whenever they believed it would clearly benefit those they watched. The Grid was cautious, but wary. They treated every mission with special care in the hopes that they would never get caught.
“Hacker, sir. Do you have a minute?” Gabby asked as she tapped on Hacker’s door.
“Of course! C’mon in.”
“Sir, I need your help,” She said as she closed the door and took a seat. Her deep blue eyes met his. “Sir, I’m in deep. Really deep with some bad people…” She mumbled, then burst into tears.
“Gabby, what’s wrong?” He said as he got up to console her.
“It’s…my boyfriend and I…” Gabby sobbed. “We needed money so we turned to some of those instant credit dealers, but we couldn’t keep up with the payments. They threatened to send someone after us to ‘collect.'" She buried her face in her hands.
“Shh, Gabby, it’s okay,” Hacker said as he patted her on the shoulder. “I will help you with this. But, we’ve got to do it legally, we’re in a precarious position right now.”
“Sir, if it was legal, I wouldn’t be asking you.”
“I would love to Gabby, but the Ministries of Commerce and Treasur
y are watching for suspicious transactions. I can’t do it.”
“Please? Not even for me?” She pleaded.
Hacker sighed. “Once we do the uproot, I can do it then. No guarantees either, the Core is watching everything now.”
“Oh Hacker! Thank you, thank you!” Gabby said as she hugged him tight. She kissed him on the cheek, and he found her vanilla perfume impossible to ignore.
“How can I ever repay you? Oh! I know, can I buy my hero a drink after work?”
“Umm, are you sure?”
“Of course! You’ve saved our lives, it’s the least I can do!” Gabby said.
The afternoon flew by as Hacker finished and sent off his device to control the fourth dimensional metal. As he walked out he noticed that Gabby was waiting for him outside. The two shared pleasantries and small talk as they walked to a bar called “The Ram’s Head.”
“Order whatever you want, my treat,” Gabby said as she sat down to the bar.
“That’s very sweet, but unnecessary,” Hacker said. Gabby smiled and turned her attention to the drink menu.
“Whiskey,” Hacker said as he closed the menu screen.
“I’ll have the same,” Gabby said. The barkeep moved in graceful silence as he grabbed the bottle by the neck and poured the two a shot.
Hacker and Gabby raised their glasses in a toast. They swallowed their drinks and as the glasses clattered on the bar, Gabby signaled for two more.
She turned her attention to Hacker. “Sir, I can’t thank you enough for all of your help, it means a lot to me.”
“Oh, Gabby, it’s nothing. Could take it from a Core Senator’s campaign fund, that would be hilarious,” He said as he threw back another shot.
Gabby let out a giggle. “Sir, you’re so smart and talented and…” She trailed off as her hand caressed Hacker’s thigh.
“What was it like being a mech runner?” Gabby asked.
Hacker’s brow furrowed. “I don’t talk about it,” He said.
“I did some research. Who was Houston?” Gabby’s voice became as soft as velvet, and her fingers glided across Hacker’s shoulders.
“I said I don’t talk about it,” He said as he downed another shot.
“I know that he was distant. That he used your unique talents for his own personal gain.”
“He was a heartless critic who got what came to him!” Hacker snapped as he threw back another shot.
“Aww, poor thing. He didn’t deserve a son like you,” Gabby said as she got in close and breathed in Hacker’s ear. Her hot breath sent shivers down his spine. He turned and stared into Gabby’s big blue eyes. His mind roiled in rage over her calling him his son, but his anger melted in the vast oceans within her eyes.
He felt a pinprick on his leg and realized he’d felt the slight sting of betrayal.
Then his world went dark.
The hood was ripped off, and a bright light seared Hacker’s corneas. The burning rays of the lamp left his face feeling singed, and the dry heat raked his skin. Sweat dripped down his scalp, and his mouth was parched. He gasped for a breath, but the air was barren too. He felt the binders that held him down. The walls were closing in. Panic squeezed his heart.
Hacker noticed three men standing in the dark half of the room, and he put two and two together. Through the darkness he saw a pair of red eyes watching his every movement.
“At last we meet Jabal Amir. I am-”
“General Hawkes,” Hacker said as the General stepped into the light. “A blind man could see you coming.” Hawkes was covered in the scars of burn marks, remnants from his assault against Houston.
“Such fire,” Hawkes said. “Yet you didn’t see me coming. Just like your mentor, you have witnessed my persistence. I will hunt a terrorist to the furthest reaches of the galaxy. And with access to the Ministry of Information, nothing is out of my reach.” The General’s words carried an air of surgical precision, each syllable a razor born from the methodical approach to hunting coders.
“Some would call me a freedom fighter.”
“You live to sow chaos and dissent. I will not have this galaxy spattering wild ideas that will throw us back into another civil war.”
“What’s wrong with a little chaos?”
“As long as I breathe there will be order!” Hawkes snapped, then cleared his throat. “Come to think of it Jabal-”
“That’s not my name anymore!”
“Indeed. Defiant just like your mentor. You want us to believe that you like to sow chaos, but it is no match for what stirs inside you is it?”
“You’ve lost it Hawkes.”
“I don’t believe I have. All you’ve ever done in your life has been some desperate search for Daddy’s approval. You couldn’t get it with yours, so you sought out another figure, Houston. And he too, proved elusive with his affections.”
Hacker steeled himself against the General’s words.
“Ah! Must’ve hit it right on the nose. All this chaos because a handful of words never said. Let’s rectify that shall we? Colonel Henry, bring in the source of the dissent.”
Hacker looked around in confusion as he heard the metal doors open. Horror gripped him as he watched the bulky Colonel Henry push a man in a wheelchair into the interrogation room. His balding head was covered in beads of sweat, his hands bound to the chair and a dirty sock dangled from his mouth.
“Get up,” Hawkes said as he kicked the chair. Abdul jumped in his chair and looked around the room. When his eyes met Hacker, he could see sheer terror in them and muffled cries lay stifled beneath the dirty sock.
“Why are you doing this Hawkes?”
“To bring the pup to heel.”
Abdul looked up at Hacker. His eyes were red and swollen. He looked puffy and weak, as though the wheelchair was his only means of movement.
“It’s a shame isn’t it Jabal?” Hawkes asked. “All you’ve ever wanted was to hear four little words from your father. Do you remember what they were?”
“How do you know this?” Hacker hissed.
Hawkes sighed. “For years you’ve been using the same three artificial intelligence programs to interfere with my work. ‘The Wrecking Crew’ you called them. I had my best analysts create a virus which would turn one of your programs against you. It wouldn’t even realize it was against you, it would merely supply us with all of the information about you I needed. I learned your strengths and your weaknesses from your own creation!”
Hacker felt a knot in his stomach. He couldn’t believe his oversight, the negligence on his part for allowing this to have happened.
“From your data dumps, I was able to piece together a pattern that stems from a common root. Four words to be precise. Do you remember what they were?”
Hacker glared at Hawkes and swallowed hard. Words couldn’t form in his mind.
“Perhaps it’s been too long then,” Hawkes said as he walked up behind Abdul. “Abdul Amir, you really should’ve been a better father.”
“Shut up!” Hacker screamed.
“You should’ve applauded his achievements, showcased his abilities, instead you condemned them with your mysticism and blind faith!”
“Get away from him or I will kill you!” Hacker howled.
“All you had to say was: ‘I’m proud of you.’” Hawkes screamed as he raised his arms in triumph. “I’ll bet you would’ve liked to have heard that hmm Jabal?”
Tears spilled from Hacker’s eyes. He looked down at his father, a round man who’d only sought to cleanse his soul. Their eyes met and filled with tears. Abdul’s eyes were filled with regret and sorrow. In them, Hacker saw all that he needed.
“Too bad you never will,” Hawkes said as he ripped the sock out of Abdul’s mouth.
“Jabal I’m sor-” A pair of mechanical arms from behind the chair seized Abdul’s face, forced his mouth open and sliced out his tongue. The man gargled on blood as he leaned forward and spat it out. He wailed in pain, his eyes desperate to say something to his son.
“You son of a bitch!” Hacker cursed as he leaped up in his chair. Hawkes kicked him down to the floor.
“Luckily for you, the Ministry wants you alive, but they didn’t specify about any of my other prisoners.”
“Sir this is not-”
“Shut up Colonel Henry!” Hawkes snapped. “Your sympathy for these derelicts has cost me quite enough!”
Abdul dropped to the floor and crawled to Hacker. He wrapped his arms around his tethered son who cried uncontrollably.
“Dad, please believe me, I didn’t want any of this to happen. I’m sorry for everything,” Hacker said. Abdul wailed and groaned, but blood kept flowing from his mouth.
“It’s okay Dad. I forgive you for everything. I know what you’re trying to say and it’s-
“So heartwarming,” Hawkes interrupted. He shot Abdul in the back who died instantaneously, still clutching his son in his arms. “Now you’ve failed to save both of your fathers.”
“You arrogant, pompous mother fucker!” Hacker shouted. Tears flowed down his face, but he saw a sadistic grin form on Hawkes’ lips. Hacker realized that he was playing into Hawkes’ hand. If he was to have any hope, he’d have to unsettle him. He’d have to ignite the icy General.
“Y’know Hawkes,” Hacker said between sobs. “It’s kinda sad that someone of your pay grade chased after little ol’ me for twelve years. Move on man.”
“Nonsense. I quite enjoy the hunt-”
“I wasn’t done,” Hacker said. “The really despicable act was using my secretary to oust us. You couldn't even find me of your own volition. You had to rely on the intel of a ditzy secretary.”
“I would think that you’d believe intel is intel Jabal. How I -”
“Y’know Hawkes, considering that I hadn’t moved my HQ for almost a year and a half, I would’ve thought that any of your chainers could’ve found us. Shame that a has-been like you couldn't.”
“I am hardly a has-been like you are Jabal. I-”
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